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One of the stranger and yet formative moments in recent NFL history was when Goodell, in the midst of the 2020 George Floyd protests, not only apologized for “not listening to players earlier,” but actually said the words “Black Lives Matter” (albeit while looking a little bit like a hostage in his basement). Fairly or not, this was the moment Goodell regained control of the narrative. And you know who forced him into doing it? Patrick Mahomes.
The NFL had struggled with how to respond to the protests, particularly considering how much credibility it had lost with Black athletes after the Kaepernick situation. Some players had spoken out, some hadn’t, and it wasn’t clear which direction the NFL would go. Then on June 1, Mahomes posted this:
The league’s best player, a biracial crossover star, had weighed in. Three days later, Mahomes organized a group of Black stars to call on the NFL itself to take a stronger stand.
Goodell listened; he made his statement five days after that. Mahomes would end up leading the charge to make Arrowhead Stadium, along with other NFL stadiums, a voter registration site for the 2020 election, following in the wake of NBA player activism. And he found a way to do it without becoming a political target, unlike fellow athlete-activist LeBron James. The NFL still has “End Racism” in its end zones and on its helmets: Relatively innocuous symbolism, but progress nonetheless.
This is part of the Mahomes magic. It’s how he can even make a moment like this at the White House with Travis Kelce funny.
Mahomes’ play on the field that will doubtless define his legacy. And there is a case to be made that this quarterback is more Michael Jordan than Tom Brady. Like Jordan, Mahomes is becoming a superstar amidst a pack of emerging fellow stars challenging his crown, from Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow to Buffalo’s Josh Allen to Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson. But like Jordan contemporaries Patrick Ewing and Charles Barkley, Mahomes’ excellent rivals also can’t get past the transcendent star just ahead of them. He keeps beating all of them in the playoffs, and hoarding championships.
If the Chiefs win on Sunday, Mahomes will win his second Super Bowl in a row, something only six other quarterbacks have ever done. Only five other quarterbacks have ever won three Super Bowls total. And remember: He’s only 28.
History is long, and fans are fickle. Sustainable love affairs with our athletic heroes are few and far between. (There was a time when we all loved Brady, too.)
Mahomes has set himself up to become one of the greatest NFL players in history. But perhaps even more impressive, he’s become one of the most important. He has been pivotal on and off the field, and has assisted the league he represents in navigating one of the trickiest periods in its history. Patrick Mahomes is an incredible NFL quarterback. But he may be remembered for his ability to, somehow, be even more than that.
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